People's Music Store signs up Universal

The true successor to the bricks and mortar independent record store?

Music site People's Music Store has partnered with Universal Music to offer over 300,000 tracks from the label available for paid download.

Fans can grab tunes from artists including Amy Winehouse, Girls Aloud, U2, Kanye West and James Morrison, while setting up their own virtual record stores.

People's Music Store founder Ged Day told TechRadar that the company's recent 'Record Store Day' highlighted "just how few independent record stores remain," which is where he feels that People's Music Store can offer "an online alternative where fans can create and run their own music download store for free.

"Music lovers, become storekeepers, recommending their favourite music, writing their own reviews and garnering a community of like-minded fans from within their own personalised stores.

Powered by music fans

He continued: "Because People's Music Store is entirely powered by music fans, it provides customers looking to buy music with a very natural social discovery experience, full of trusted opinion and authentic reviews - exactly what you'd look for in a bricks and mortar independent record store.

"And for all sales generated in their store, storekeepers earn a 10% commission in the form of reward points which can be used to buy music in a way which feels like free. Against the backdrop of the high profile Pirate Bay ruling, People's Music Store offers a peer retail service which we hope will encourage the legal sale of music."

The Universal Music Catalogue deal heralds the first of the major labels to sign up to People's Music Store, which also partnered up with indie faithfuls Rough Trade, Lex and Ninja Tunes, and artists including Nightmares on Wax and Various Production recently.